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Updated 15:50
President Trump's phone call to Rosh Hashanah to Jewish groups lasted only 20 minutes, but four allies were singing praises to a much more far-right audience than the calls made.
Similar calls by President Obama have resulted in longer exchanges of views – and sometimes difficult questions from the rabbis. Last year, Trump's first call lasted only a few minutes and had no questions. This one had two – but it was soft bullets from the president of the Jewish Republican coalition, Norm Coleman, and Trump's informal adviser, Alan Dershowitz, who both praised the politics of Trump before their questions.
Coleman's question about the fight against Iran, for example, was preceded by praises to Trump and his staff, according to a transcript published by the White House.
"On behalf of more than 50,000 members of the Jewish Republican Coalition that I chair, let me thank you for the courage and wisdom you have shown and the promises and promises held this year that have truly strengthened US relations. -israéliennes. Started Coleman.
"I agree with that," Trump replied.
Dershowitz asked if the Jewish community should be optimistic that Trump could put an end to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.
"I think the answer to that is a very strong yes – you should be," replied Trump. "As I said before, it's really considered one of the most difficult transactions to achieve. I do not know what kind of contract you are talking about. If you look at Israel and the Palestinians, it's still at the top of the list in terms of the level of difficulty. But we will be able to do it. "
Trump also defended his decision to cut funding to the United Nations for Palestinian refugees. "The United States paid them huge sums of money," Trump said. "And I would say that you will have money, but we do not pay you until we have an agreement. If we do not reach an agreement, we do not pay. "
Trump's son-in-law and trustee, Jared Kushner, who introduced Trump, and Israel's ambassador, David Friedman, also hailed Trump's decision to move the US embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem. Friedman said the new embassy building has become a "major tourist site" where people take pictures and even cry.
Call invitations were not issued until late last week, which led many to believe that it was an afterthought. The call was organized during the Obama administration by reformist and conservative organizations of Judaism, but these groups boycotted the appeal last year to protest against Trump's handling of the white nationalist march at Charlottesville, Virginia. The Religious Action Center, leader of the reform movement, told the Religion News Service that it would not participate in an invitation this year either.
Last year, Trump's list of invitations extended beyond rabbinic groups to include hawk organizations such as the RJC, the Zionist Organization of America, and the Simon Wiesenthal Center. . This year's list of guests included for the first time the Coalition for Jewish Values, a right-wing Orthodox rabbinical group. The CJV press release indicates that several other organizations have also been invited to participate for the first time.
Trump mentioned that several Holocaust survivors were also present at the call. Dov Hikind, Member of Parliament for New York State, welcomed a delegation of survivors into his office. Trump congratulated Hikind for defending the deportation of a former Nazi prison guard. The Trump administration dealt with the expulsion earlier this year.
Contact Aiden Pink at [email protected] or on Twitter, @aidenpink
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